CHISINAU – Moldova and the German state of Bavaria will create an intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation, President Maia Sandu and Bavaria’s minister-president Markus Soder announced on Friday during his first official visit to the Moldovan capital.
The new platform will address projects in the economy, agriculture, medicine and modern technologies, including artificial intelligence. Bavarian officials said the commission is meant to turn good political relations into concrete investment projects, jobs and business partnerships, and to support Moldova’s economic rapprochement with the European Union.
“We want more Moldovan companies to enter Bavarian value chains and more Bavarian companies to discover the advantages of investing and producing in Moldova,” Sandu said after the talks in Chisinau.
Trade ties are already strong and expanding. More than half of Moldova’s exports to the German market go to Bavaria, and exports to the state grew by more than 50 percent in 2025 to reach 73 million euros, according to the presidency.
Sandu also used the meeting to reaffirm Moldova’s European course, saying the country wants an accession process based on merits and the results of reforms, without exceptions or preferential treatment. Soder echoed the message, saying Moldova belongs to the European Union and that Bavaria supports its path toward the bloc. “We believe that Moldova should have a place in the European Union,” he said. “We see that Moldova works very hard and very intensively. We advocate for this process to be not only fast, but also fair and equitable.”
Bavaria is Germany’s largest state by area and one of Europe’s most powerful industrial economies, known for its automotive industry, advanced technologies and innovation capacity. Soder noted that Bavaria has established similar cooperation mechanisms with other partners on the path to European integration, and praised Moldova’s progress in justice, police and the rule of law.
The visit comes as Moldova presses ahead with EU accession talks that formally opened in June 2026 and as Brussels weighs the pace of enlargement. Chisinau hopes cooperation with Bavaria will help integrate Moldovan companies into European supply chains, attract foreign investment and accelerate its path toward EU membership.
Sources: IPN, Logos Press, Cotidianul.
Author: Europe Desk
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